If our employees choose to keep their current health plans in this years open enrollment, how will their plans be affected by health care reform provisions?
Employees and their dependents will no longer be subject to lifetime coverage limits, and if they have children under 19 with pre-existing conditions, they can no longer be denied coverage. If employees have any adult children under age 26 who were previously ineligible for your plan (and, for grandfathered plans only, have no other employment-sponsored health plan), you must now offer them dependent coverage. Furthermore, you cannot make significant reductions to their benefits or premium subsidies without having the plan be considered “new” (i.e., no longer grandfathered) and be required to adhere to even more consumer protections, such as providing preventive services without cost-sharing and complying with new claims and appeals requirements.
